A former Georgia high school student has filed a lawsuit claiming that a school administrator impermissibly showed an image of her in a bikini to hundreds of local parents and students.

Chelsea Chaney, who is now a freshman at the University of Georgia, said the photo was taken on a family vacation when she was 17 years old. It shows her in a two-piece bikini next to a cardboard cutout of legendary rapper Snoop Dogg.

Chaney posted the photo on her Facebook page, believing that only people she had accepted as Facebook friends (and, of course, their friends) would be able to see it.

The director of technology at Starr’s Mill High School then decided to show the image during a well-attended district-wide seminar focused on the long-term dangers of social media.

In the seminar, which allegedly occurred when Chaney was a student at the school and a minor, the caption of Chaney’s bikini-clad photo was allegedly: “Once it’s there, it’s there to stay.”

“I was embarrassed. I was horrified,” Chaney told a WSB-TV reporter. “It never crossed my mind that it would ever — that this would ever happen to me.”

The school official allegedly failed to obtain — or, apparently, even try to obtain — Chaney’s or her parents’ permission.

The unnamed school official did later apologize, in writing, explaining that the image had been “randomly chosen.”

Chaney did not accept the apology. She also remains skeptical of the motive.

“I just don’t think it was random,” she said. “It wasn’t my main picture. You had to go looking through it.”

Pete Wellborn, an attorney now representing Chaney and her family, told the ABC affiliate that he has filed a lawsuit on her behalf for $2 million, alleging that the school district violated federal law, state law and Chaney’s constitutional rights.

Wellborn maintains that a person does not cede rights to others by posting images on Internet sites such as Facebook.

“Their idea that putting something on Facebook gives them a license to steal it and carte blanche to do with it what they did is wrong ethically, it’s wrong morally and it’s absolutely wrong legally,” the attorney argued.

“I just don’t want this to happen to another student,” Chaney added, according to the station.

The school district denied legal liability but otherwise declined to comment on the litigation.

I can totally see her point, but if it's publicly posted on her page, that's kind of the point. People can see that stuff that you might not want them to see. And now you see how it affects your future and perception.

I can totally see her point, but if it's publicly posted on her page, that's kind of the point. People can see that stuff that you might not want them to see. And now you see how it affects your future and perception.

It wasn't posted publicly... If you read, it said she had it set for friends of friends.

It wasn't posted publicly... If you read, it said she had it set for friends of friends.

I said she "believe only friends and friends of friends" would see it. If you have 100 friends and each of those people has a 100 friends, what are the odds someone you don't want seeing something will see something? Pretty much public. If you don't want something public, make it private. Pretty much cut and dried.

Alright.. so how does she came out damage amount of $2M. I am more interested in calculation of her future income or reputation loss which warrants $2M damage. A simple apology from school is sufficient int his case or give her an iphone and be done with it. But $2M... that's ridiculous. School should sue her for harrasment.

Alright.. so how does she came out damage amount of $2M. I am more interested in calculation of her future income or reputation loss which warrants $2M damage. A simple apology from school is sufficient int his case or give her an iphone and be done with it. But $2M... that's ridiculous. School should sue her for harrasment.

You sue for "potential" future lost income which could be a lot more, and the younger you are(above a certain age anyway) the more it is, unless you're already working in a high income job where such exposure can ruin your whole career.

Anyway, I think the lawsuit is doing far more damage to her future career options than a image showed at a closed conference with parents and school officials ever did, which is pretty much none.